Storms Destroy Derna, Thousands Feared Dead in Libyan Crisis

 

In the eastern Libyan city of Derna on Wednesday, something terrible happened. Due to the heavy rain, two major dams collapsed. Due to this, there were serious floods that destroyed a lot of property and possibly thousands of lives.

We are unsure of the exact number of fatalities or missing persons because it is difficult to enter Derna. According to some officials, there may be thousands.

We can see from images posted on social media that roads were blocked, and landslides and flooding made it difficult for rescue workers to help people. To locate and bury the remains in mass graves, the community had to make use of simple tools.

Derna and the neighboring villages are mostly shut off from the outside world, in spite of the attempts made by the government to fix the internet and mobile phones. Both those in power in the east and those who are working against them in the west use the word "thousands" when describing the death toll.

The floods in Derna were to blame for more than 2,300 fatalities, 7,000 injuries, and more than 5,000 unaccounted-for persons, according to Osama Ali, who represents Libya's "Emergency and Rescue Service" under the government in Tripoli that many nations recognize.

According to a Red Cross employee, 10,000 people are still listed as missing and thousands more people may have died. Since an earthquake that occurred in 1963, this is the worst natural disaster to hit the eastern area of Libya.

On Sunday, a powerful storm by the name of Daniel made its way to the eastern coast of Libya and destroyed communities like Benghazi. Then it moved inland and created issues in other towns like Shahat, al-Marj, al-Bayda, Soussa, and particularly Derna, which was the most severely affected.

Two dams in Derna that were used to keep back water from a river both collapsed on Sunday night. Then, a large amount of water rushed into the city, drowning everything, including bridges and residences, as the people in Libya heard a huge bang that sounded like an explosion. Some people were swept away into the sea by the flood.

On Tuesday, the sea started to bring back bodies that had been submerged for awhile. There are images of a military helicopter removing bodies from a beach covered in metal and rubble.

People from Libya and other nations are making an effort to aid the victims, but it is taking time.

The western half of Libya is delivering supplies to Derna, and the Tripoli governance is sending medical personnel, helicopters, and other rescue teams for help. Turkey and the United Arab Emirates are also providing aid.